Providing services using unmanned aerial vehicles

ABSTRACT

Embodiments described herein may help to provide support via a fleet of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). An illustrative medical-support system may include multiple UAVs, which are configured to provide support for a number of different situations. Further, the medical-support system may be configured to: (a) identify a remote situation, (b) determine a target location corresponding to the situation, (c) select a UAV from the fleet of UAVs, where the selection of the UAV is based on a determination that the selected UAV is configured for the identified situation, and (d) cause the selected UAV to travel to the target location to provide support.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is a continuation of co-owned U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 13/730,298, filed Dec. 28, 2012, the contents of which arehereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND

Unless otherwise indicated herein, the materials described in thissection are not prior art to the claims in this application and are notadmitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.

An unmanned vehicle, which may also be referred to as an autonomousvehicle, is a vehicle capable of travel without a physically-presenthuman operator. An unmanned vehicle may operate in a remote-controlmode, in an autonomous mode, or in a partially autonomous mode.

When an unmanned vehicle operates in a remote-control mode, a pilot ordriver that is at a remote location can control the unmanned vehicle viacommands that are sent to the unmanned vehicle via a wireless link. Whenthe unmanned vehicle operates in autonomous mode, the unmanned vehicletypically moves based on pre-programmed navigation waypoints, dynamicautomation systems, or a combination of these. Further, some unmannedvehicles can operate in both a remote-control mode and an autonomousmode, and in some instances may do so simultaneously. For instance, aremote pilot or driver may wish to leave navigation to an autonomoussystem while manually performing another task, such as operating amechanical system for picking up objects, as an example.

Various types of unmanned vehicles exist for various differentenvironments. For instance, unmanned vehicles exist for operation in theair, on the ground, underwater, and in space. Unmanned vehicles alsoexist for hybrid operations in which multi-environment operation ispossible. Examples of hybrid unmanned vehicles include an amphibiouscraft that is capable of operation on land as well as on water or afloatplane that is capable of landing on water as well as on land. Otherexamples are also possible.

SUMMARY

In one aspect, an exemplary computer-implemented method may involve acomputing device: (a) identifying a remote medical situation; (b)determining a target location corresponding to the medical situation;(c) selecting an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) from a plurality of UAVs,wherein the plurality of UAVs are configured to provide medical supportfor a plurality of medical situations, and wherein the selection of theUAV is based at least in part on a determination that the selected UAVis configured for the identified medical situation; and (d) causing theselected UAV to travel to the target location to provide medicalsupport.

In a further aspect, a non-transitory computer readable medium may havestored therein instructions that are executable to cause a computingsystem to perform functions comprising: (a) identifying a remote medicalsituation; (b) determining a target location corresponding to themedical situation; (c) selecting an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) from aplurality of UAVs, wherein the plurality of UAVs are configured toprovide medical support for a plurality of medical situations, andwherein the selection of the UAV is based at least in part on adetermination that the selected UAV is configured for the identifiedmedical situation; and (d) causing the selected UAV to travel to thetarget location to provide medical support.

In another aspect, a medical-support system may include at least onenon-transitory computer readable medium in at least one component of thesystem, and program instructions stored in the at least onenon-transitory computer readable medium and executable by at least oneprocessor to: (a) identify a remote medical situation; (b) determine atarget location corresponding to the medical situation; (d) select anunmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) from a plurality of UAVs, wherein theplurality of UAVs are configured to provide medical support for aplurality of medical situations, and wherein the selection of the UAV isbased at least in part on a determination that the selected UAV isconfigured for the identified medical situation; and (c) cause theselected UAV to travel to the target location to provide medicalsupport.

In yet another aspect, a medical-support system may include: (i) aplurality of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), wherein the plurality ofUAVs are configured to provide medical support for a plurality ofmedical situations; and (ii) at least one component that is configuredto: (a) identify a remote medical situation; (b) determine a targetlocation corresponding to the medical situation; (c) select an unmannedaerial vehicle (UAV) from a plurality of UAVs, wherein the selection ofthe UAV is based at least in part on a determination that the selectedUAV is configured for the identified medical situation; and (d) causethe selected UAV to travel to the target location to provide medicalsupport.

These as well as other aspects, advantages, and alternatives, willbecome apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art by reading thefollowing detailed description, with reference where appropriate to theaccompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIGS. 1, 2, 3A, and 3B are simplified illustrations of unmanned aerialvehicles, according to example embodiments.

FIG. 4 is a simplified block diagram illustrating a medical supportsystem, according to an example embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a simplified block diagram illustrating components of anunmanned aerial vehicle, according to an example embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a method 600, according to anexample embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Exemplary methods and systems are described herein. It should beunderstood that the word “exemplary” is used herein to mean “serving asan example, instance, or illustration.” Any embodiment or featuredescribed herein as “exemplary” or “illustrative” is not necessarily tobe construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments orfeatures. More generally, the embodiments described herein are not meantto be limiting. It will be readily understood that certain aspects ofthe disclosed systems and methods can be arranged and combined in a widevariety of different configurations, all of which are contemplatedherein.

I. Overview

Embodiments described herein may relate to and/or may be implemented ina system in which unmanned vehicles, and in particular, “unmanned aerialvehicles” (UAVs), are configured to provide medical support.

In an illustrative embodiment, a medical-support system may include afleet of UAVs that are distributed throughout a geographic area, such asa city. The medical-support system may be configured for communicationswith remote devices, such as mobile phones, so that medical support canbe requested by a person in need of such medical support (or by otherson behalf of a person in need). The medical-support system can thendispatch the appropriate UAV or UAVs to the scene of the medicalsituation in order to provide medical support.

In particular, a medical-support system may include a fleet with anumber of different types of UAVs, which are configured for differentmedical situations. For instance, some UAVs may be configured with itemsand/or functionality that are expected to be helpful in a cardiac-arrestsituation, some UAVs may be configured to help a choking victim, someUAVs may be configured to help a trauma victim, and so on. As such, anillustrative medical-support system may be configured to identify orclassify the particular type of medical situation that is occurring, toselect the appropriate UAV from those that are available, and todispatch the selected UAV to the scene of the medical situation.

In a further aspect, a medical-support system may be configured tolocate where a medical situation is occurring or has occurred, so thatone or more selected UAVs can be dispatched to the location. Further,once the location of the medical situation has been determined, themedical-support system may configure the selected UAV or UAVs toautonomously navigate to (or at least near to) the location of themedical situation. In some embodiments, the medical-support system mayconfigure a UAV to travel to a general location near the scene ofmedical situation, at which point the medical-support system may providefor remote control of the UAV by an operator, so the operator canmanually navigate the UAV to the specific location of the medicalsituation (e.g., to a specific person in a crowded market).

It should be understood that the above embodiments, and otherembodiments described herein, are provided for explanatory purposes, andare not intended to be limiting.

Further, the term “medical situation” as used herein should beunderstood to include any situation to which government or privateentity, such as a police department, a fire department, and/or anemergency medical services (EMS) entity, might dispatch its personnel.Therefore, some medical situations may in fact be non-medical in nature.For example, an emergency situation to which a police car, fire truck,or ambulance might be dispatched may be considered a medical situationfor purposes of this disclosure. Medical support may not be required atsuch emergency situations (e.g., when police are sent to the scene of anon-violent crime). Further, some non-emergency situations to which apolice car, fire truck, ambulance, or the like might be dispatched, mayalso be considered a medical situation for purposes of this disclosure.Thus, while exemplary embodiments may be described as being implementedto help provide medical support at the scene of a medical situation,those skilled in the art will understand that the UAVs, thefunctionality of such UAVs, and/or other aspects of the embodiments thatare explicitly described herein can also apply in non-medical and/ornon-emergency applications.

II. Illustrative Unmanned Vehicles

The term “unmanned aerial vehicle,” as used in this disclosure, refersto any autonomous or semi-autonomous vehicle that is capable ofperforming some functions without a physically-present human pilot.Examples of flight-related functions may include, but are not limitedto, sensing its environment or operating in the air without a need forinput from an operator, among others.

A UAV may be autonomous or semi-autonomous. For instance, some functionscould be controlled by a remote human operator, while other functionsare carried out autonomously. Further, a UAV may be configured to allowa remote operator to take over functions that can otherwise becontrolled autonomously by the UAV. Yet further, a given type offunction may be controlled remotely at one level of abstraction andperformed autonomously at another level of abstraction. For example, aremote operator could control high level navigation decisions for a UAV,such as by specifying that the UAV should travel from one location toanother (e.g., from the city hall in Palo Alto to the city hall in SanFrancisco), while the UAV's navigation system autonomously controls morefine-grained navigation decisions, such as the specific route to takebetween the two locations, specific flight controls to achieve the routeand avoid obstacles while navigating the route, and so on. Otherexamples are also possible.

A UAV can be of various forms. For example, a UAV may take the form of arotorcraft such as a helicopter or multicopter, a fixed-wing aircraft, ajet aircraft, a ducted fan aircraft, a lighter-than-air dirigible suchas a blimp or steerable balloon, a tail-sitter aircraft, a glideraircraft, and/or an ornithopter, among other possibilities. Further, theterms “drone”, “unmanned aerial vehicle system” (“UAVS”), or “unmannedaerial system” (“UAS”) may also be used to refer to a UAV.

FIG. 1 is a simplified illustration of a UAV, according to an exampleembodiment. In particular, FIG. 1 shows an example of a rotorcraft 100that is commonly referred to as a multicopter. Multicopter 100 may alsobe referred to as a quadcopter, as it includes four rotors 110. Itshould be understood that example embodiments may involve rotorcraftwith more or less rotors than multicopter 100. For example, a helicoptertypically has two rotors. Other examples with three or more rotors arepossible as well. Herein, the term “multicopter” refers to anyrotorcraft having more than two rotors, and the term “helicopter” refersto rotorcraft having two rotors.

Referring to multicopter 100 in greater detail, the four rotors 110provide propulsion and maneuverability for the multicopter 100. Morespecifically, each rotor 110 includes blades that are attached to amotor 120. Configured as such the rotors may allow the multicopter 100to take off and land vertically, to maneuver in any direction, and/or tohover. Furthermore, the pitch of the blades may be adjusted as a groupand/or differentially, and may allow a multicopter 110 to performthree-dimensional aerial maneuvers such as an upside-down hover, acontinuous tail-down “tic-toc,” loops, loops with pirouettes,stall-turns with pirouette, knife-edge, immelmann, slapper, andtraveling flips, among others. When the pitch of all blades is adjustedto perform such aerial maneuvering, this may be referred to as adjustingthe “collective pitch” of the multicopter 100. Blade-pitch adjustmentmay be particularly useful for rotorcraft with substantial inertia inthe rotors and/or drive train, but is not limited to such rotorcraft.

Additionally or alternatively, multicopter 100 may propel and maneuveritself adjust the rotation rate of the motors, collectively ordifferentially. This technique may be particularly useful for smallelectric rotorcraft with low inertia in the motors and/or rotor system,but is not limited to such rotorcraft.

Multicopter 100 also includes a central enclosure 130 with a hinged lid135. The central enclosure may contain, e.g., control electronics suchas an inertial measurement unit (IMU) and/or an electronic speedcontroller, batteries, other sensors, and/or a payload, among otherpossibilities.

The illustrative multicopter 100 also includes landing gear 140 toassist with controlled take-offs and landings. In other embodiments,multicopters and other types of UAVs without landing gear are alsopossible.

In a further aspect, multicopter 100 includes rotor protectors 150. Suchrotor protectors 150 can serve multiple purposes, such as protecting therotors 110 from damage if the multicopter 100 strays too close to anobject, protecting the multicopter 100 structure from damage, andprotecting nearby objects from being damaged by the rotors 110. Itshould be understood that in other embodiments, multicopters and othertypes of UAVs without rotor protectors are also possible. Further, rotorprotectors of different shapes, sizes, and function are possible,without departing from the scope of the invention.

A multicopter 100 may control the direction and/or speed of its movementby controlling its pitch, roll, yaw, and/or altitude. To do so,multicopter 100 may increase or decrease the speeds at which the rotors110 spin. For example, by maintaining a constant speed of three rotors110 and decreasing the speed of a fourth rotor, the multicopter 100 canroll right, roll left, pitch forward, or pitch backward, depending uponwhich motor has its speed decreased. Specifically, the multicopter mayroll in the direction of the motor with the decreased speed. As anotherexample, increasing or decreasing the speed of all rotors 110simultaneously can result in the multicopter 100 increasing ordecreasing its altitude, respectively. As yet another example,increasing or decreasing the speed of rotors 110 that are turning in thesame direction can result in the multicopter 100 performing a yaw-leftor yaw-right movement. These are but a few examples of the differenttypes of movement that can be accomplished by independently orcollectively adjusting the RPM and/or the direction that rotors 110 arespinning.

FIG. 2 is a simplified illustration of a UAV, according to an exampleembodiment. In particular, FIG. 2 shows an example of a tail-sitter UAV200. In the illustrated example, the tail-sitter UAV 200 has fixed wings202 to provide lift and allow the UAV to glide horizontally (e.g., alongthe x-axis, in a position that is approximately perpendicular to theposition shown in FIG. 2). However, the fixed wings 202 also allow thetail-sitter UAV 200 take off and land vertically on its own.

For example, at a launch site, tail-sitter UAV 200 may be positionedvertically (as shown) with fins 204 and/or wings 202 resting on theground and stabilizing the UAV in the vertical position. The tail-sitterUAV 200 may then take off by operating propellers 206 to generate theupward thrust (e.g., a thrust that is generally along the y-axis). Onceat a suitable altitude, the tail-sitter UAV 200 may use its flaps 208 toreorient itself in a horizontal position, such that the fuselage 210 iscloser to being aligned with the x-axis than the y-axis. Positionedhorizontally, the propellers 206 may provide forward thrust so that thetail-sitter UAV 200 can fly in a similar manner as a typical airplane.

Variations on the illustrated tail-sitter UAV 200 are possible. Forinstance, tail-sitters UAVs with more or less propellers, or thatutilize a ducted fan or multiple ducted fans, are also possible.Further, different wing configurations with more wings (e.g., an“x-wing” configuration with four wings), with less wings, or even withno wings, are also possible. More generally, it should be understoodthat other types of tail-sitter UAVs and variations on the illustratedtail-sitter UAV 200 are also possible.

As noted above, some embodiments may involve other types of UAVs, inaddition or in the alternative to multicopters. For instance, FIGS. 3Aand 3B are simplified illustrations of other types of UAVs, according toexample embodiments.

In particular, FIG. 3A shows an example of a fixed-wing aircraft 300,which may also be referred to as an airplane, an aeroplane, or simply aplane. A fixed-wing aircraft 300, as the name implies, has stationarywings 302 that generate lift based on the wing shape and the vehicle'sforward airspeed. This wing configuration is different from arotorcraft's configuration, which produces lift through rotating rotorsabout a fixed mast, and an ornithopter's configuration, which produceslift by flapping wings.

FIG. 3A depicts some common structures used in a fixed-wing aircraft300. In particular, fixed-wing aircraft 300 includes a fuselage 304, twohorizontal wings 302 with an airfoil-shaped cross section to produce anaerodynamic force, a vertical stabilizer 306 (or fin) to stabilize theplane's yaw (turn left or right), a horizontal stabilizer 308 (alsoreferred to as an elevator or tailplane) to stabilize pitch (tilt up ordown), landing gear 310, and a propulsion unit 312, which can include amotor, shaft, and propeller.

FIG. 3B shows an example of an aircraft 350 with a propeller in a pusherconfiguration. The term “pusher” refers to the fact that the propulsionunit 358 is mounted at the back of the aircraft and “pushes” the vehicleforward, in contrast to the propulsion unit being mounted at the frontof the aircraft. Similar to the description provided for FIG. 3A, FIG.3B depicts common structures used in the pusher plane: a fuselage 352,two horizontal wings 354, vertical stabilizers 356, and a propulsionunit 358, which can include a motor, shaft, and propeller.

UAVs can be launched in various ways, using various types of launchsystems (which may also be referred to as deployment systems). A verysimple way to launch a UAV is a hand launch. To perform a hand launch, auser holds a portion of the aircraft, preferably away from the spinningrotors, and throws the aircraft into the air while contemporaneouslythrottling the propulsion unit to generate lift.

Rather than using a hand launch procedure in which the person launchingthe vehicle is exposed to risk from the quickly spinning propellers, astationary or mobile launch station can be utilized. For instance, alaunch system can include supports, angled and inclined rails, and abackstop. The aircraft begins the launch system stationary on the angledand inclined rails and launches by sufficiently increasing the speed ofthe propeller to generate forward airspeed along the incline of thelaunch system. By the end of the angled and inclined rails, the aircraftcan have sufficient airspeed to generate lift. As another example, alaunch system may include a rail gun or cannon, either of which maylaunch a UAV by thrusting the UAV into flight. A launch system of thistype may launch a UAV quickly and/or may launch a UAV far towards theUAV's destination. Other types of launch systems may also be utilized.

In some cases, there may be no separate launch system for a UAV, as aUAV may be configured to launch itself. For example, a “tail sitter” UAVtypically has fixed wings to provide lift and allow the UAV to glide,but also is configured to take off and land vertically on its own. Otherexamples of self-launching UAVs are also possible.

In a further aspect, various other types of unmanned vehicles may beutilized to provide remote medical support. Such vehicles may include,for example, unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs), unmanned space vehicles(USVs), and/or unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs). A UGV may be avehicle which is capable of sensing its own environment and navigatingsurface-based terrain without input from a driver. Examples of UGVsinclude watercraft, cars, trucks, buggies, motorcycles, treadedvehicles, and retrieval duck decoys, among others. A UUV is a vehiclethat is capable of sensing its own environment and navigating underwateron its own, such as a submersible vehicle. Other types of unmannedvehicles are possible as well.

III. Illustrative Medical Support Systems with UAVs

As noted above, UAVs may be deployed to provide remote medical support.FIG. 4 is a simplified block diagram illustrating a medical supportsystem 400, according to an example embodiment.

In an illustrative medical-support system 400, an access system 402 mayallow for interaction with, control of, and/or utilization of a networkof medical-support UAVs 404. In some embodiments, an access system 402may be a computing system that allows for human-controlled dispatch ofUAVs 404. As such, the control system may include or otherwise provide auser interface (UI) 403 via which a user can access and/or control UAVs404.

As a specific example, access system 402 could be a computing system ata police station or a fire station. Accordingly, a human operator at thepolice or fire station may receive an indication that a situation existsfrom a remote device 406 (e.g., a phone call, text message, etc.). Theoperator may then determine that medical support is appropriate andutilize access system 402 to dispatch one or more UAVs to provide theappropriate medical support. For example, the operator may use the UI403 of access system 402 to request that a UAV be dispatched to thelocation of remote device 406 (or to another location indicated by theuser of the remote device 406).

A UI 403 of an access system 402 may provide other functionality inaddition to allowing for dispatch of UAVs 404. For example, UI 403 mayallow an operator to specify certain details related to the medicalsituation to which the UAV is being dispatched. Examples of such detailsmay include, but are not limited to: (a) general information related tothe person or persons involved in the situation, such as age, height,weight, and so on, (b) medical information related to the person orpersons involved in the situation, such as medical history, knownallergies, and so on, (c) information related to the medical situationitself, such as symptoms exhibited by a person, details of eventssurrounding the situation (e.g., a car accident), and so on, and (d)desired specifications for the UAV to be dispatched, such asmedical-support capabilities, wireless-communication capabilities, andso on.

Further, an access system 402 may provide for remote operation of a UAV.For instance, an access system 402 may allow an operator to control theflight of a UAV via UI 403. As a specific example, an operator may usean access system to dispatch a UAV 404 to the scene of a medicalsituation. The UAV 404 may then autonomously navigate to the generalarea where the medical situation is believed to exist (e.g., a stadium).At this point, the operator may use the access system 402 to take overcontrol of the UAV 404, and navigate the UAV to the particular person inneed of medical support (e.g., to the person's seat within the stadium).Other examples are also possible.

In an illustrative embodiment, UAVs 404 may take various forms. Forexample, each UAV 404 may be a UAV such as those illustrated in FIGS. 1,2, 3A, and 3B. However, medical support system 400 may also utilizeother types of UAVs without departing from the scope of the invention.In some implementations, all UAVs 404 may be of the same or a similarconfiguration. However, in other implementations, UAVs 404 may include anumber of different types of UAVs. For instance, UAVs 404 may include anumber of types of UAVs, with each type of UAV being configured for adifferent type or types of medical support.

A remote device 406 may take various forms. Generally, a remote device406 may be any device via which a request for medical support can bemade and/or via which a situation that may require or benefit frommedical support can be reported. For instance, a remote device 406 maybe a mobile phone, tablet computer, laptop computer, personal computer,or any network-connected computing device. Further, in some instances,remote device 406 may not be a computing device. As an example, astandard telephone, which allows for communication via plain oldtelephone service (POTS), may serve as a remote device 406.

Further, a remote device 406 may be configured to communicate withaccess system 402 via one or more types of communication network(s) 414.For example, a remote device 406 could communicate with access system402 (or via a human operator of the access system) by placing a phonecall over a POTS network, a cellular network, and/or a data network suchas the Internet. Other types of networks may also be utilized.

As noted above, a remote device 406 may be configured to allow a user torequest medical support. For example, a person may use their mobilephone, a POTS phone, or a VoIP phone, to place an emergency call (e.g.,a 9-1-1 call) and request that medical support be provided at the sceneof an accident. Further, note that a request for medical support neednot be explicit. For instance, a person may place a 9-1-1 call to reportan emergency situation. When the 9-1-1 operator receives such a call,the operator may evaluate the information that is provided and decidethat medical support is appropriate. Accordingly, the operator may usean access system 402 to dispatch a UAV 404.

In a further aspect, a remote device 406 may be configured to determineand/or provide an indication of its own location. For example, remotedevice 406 may include a GPS system so that it can include GPS locationinformation (e.g., GPS coordinates) in a communication to an accesssystem 402 and/or to a dispatch system such as central dispatch system408. As another example, a remote device 406 may use a technique thatinvolves triangulation (e.g., between base stations in a cellularnetwork) to determine its location. Alternatively, another system suchas a cellular network may use a technique that involves triangulation todetermine the location of a remote device 406, and then send a locationmessage to the remote device 406 to inform the remote device of itslocation. Other location-determination techniques are also possible.

In an illustrative arrangement, central dispatch system 408 may be aserver or group of servers, which is configured to receive dispatchmessages requests and/or dispatch instructions from an access system402. Such dispatch messages may request or instruct the central dispatchsystem 408 to coordinate the deployment of UAVs for remote medicalsupport. A central dispatch system 408 may be further configured toroute such requests or instructions to local dispatch systems 410. Toprovide such functionality, central dispatch system 408 may communicatewith access system 402 via a data network, such as the Internet or aprivate network that is established for communications between accesssystems and automated dispatch systems.

In the illustrated configuration, central dispatch system 408 may beconfigured to coordinate the dispatch of UAVs 404 from a number ofdifferent local dispatch systems 410. As such, central dispatch system408 may keep track of which UAVs 404 are located at which local dispatchsystems 410, which UAVs 404 are currently available for deployment,and/or which medical situation or situations each of the UAVs 404 isconfigured for. Additionally or alternatively, each local dispatchsystem 410 may be configured to track which of its associated UAVs 404are currently available for deployment and/or which medical situation orsituations each of its associated UAVs is configured for.

In some embodiments, when central dispatch system 408 receives a requestfor medical support from an access system 402, central dispatch system408 may select a specific UAV 404 to dispatch. The central dispatchsystem 408 may accordingly instruct the local dispatch system 410 thatis associated with the selected UAV to dispatch the selected UAV. Thelocal dispatch system 410 may then operate its associated deploymentsystem 412 to launch the selected UAV.

As a specific example, central dispatch system 408 may receive a requestfor medical support that indicates a certain type of medical situationand a location where the situation is occurring. Take, for instance, arequest for medical support at the home of a person who appears to havesuffered from cardiac arrest. In this scenario, the central dispatchsystem 408 may evaluate the fleet of UAVs 404 to select the closestavailable UAV to the person's home that is configured to provide medicalsupport when a heart attack has occurred. Alternatively, the centraldispatch system 408 may select an available UAV that is within a certaindistance from the person's home (which may or may not be the closest),and which is configured to provide medical support when cardiac arresthas occurred.

In other embodiments, a central dispatch system 408 may forward arequest for medical support to a local dispatch system 410 that is nearthe location where the support is requested, and leave the selection ofa particular UAV 404 to the local dispatch system 410. For instance, ina variation on the above example, central dispatch system 408 mayforward a request for medical support at the home of a person whoappears to have suffered from a heart attack to the local dispatchsystem 410 that is closest to, or within a certain distance from, theperson's home. Upon receipt of the request, the local dispatch system410 may then determine which of its associated UAVs is configured toprovide medical support to a heart-attack victim, and deploy this UAV.

In an example configuration, a local dispatch system 410 may beimplemented in a computing system at the same location as the deploymentsystem or systems 412 that it controls. For example, in someembodiments, a local dispatch system 410 could be implemented by acomputing system at a building, such as a fire station, where thedeployment systems 412 and UAVs 404 that are associated with theparticular local dispatch system 410 are also located. In otherembodiments, a local dispatch system 410 could be implemented at alocation that is remote to its associated deployment systems 412 andUAVs 404.

Numerous variations on and alternatives to the illustrated configurationof medical support system 400 are possible. For example, in someembodiments, a user of a remote device 406 could request medical supportdirectly from a central dispatch system 408. To do so, an applicationmay be implemented on a remote device 406 that allows the user toprovide information regarding a medical situation, and generate and senda data message to request medical support. Such an application mightalso allow the user to request a particular type of medical support(e.g., by requesting that a UAV deliver a certain kind of medicine). Insuch an embodiment, central dispatch system 408 may include automatedfunctionality to handle requests that are generated by such anapplication, evaluate such requests, and, if appropriate, coordinatewith an appropriate local dispatch system 410 to deploy a UAV.

Further, in some implementations, some or all of the functionality thatis attributed herein to central dispatch system 408, local dispatchsystem(s) 410, access system 402, and/or deployment system(s) 412 couldbe combined in a single system, implemented in a more complex system,and/or redistributed among central dispatch system 408, local dispatchsystem(s) 410, access system 402, and/or deployment system(s) 412 invarious ways.

Yet further, while each local dispatch system 410 is shown as having twoassociated deployment systems, a given local dispatch system 410 mayhave more or less associated deployment systems. Similarly, whilecentral dispatch system 408 is shown as being in communication with twolocal dispatch systems 410, a central dispatch system may be incommunication with more or less local dispatch systems 410.

In a further aspect, a deployment system 412 may take various forms. Ingeneral, a deployment system may take the form of or include a systemfor physically launching a UAV 404. Further, a deployment system 412 maybe configured to launch one particular UAV 404, or to launch multipleUAVs 404. A deployment system 412 may further be configured to provideadditional functions, including for example, diagnostic-relatedfunctions such as verifying system functionality of the UAV, verifyingfunctionality of devices that are housed within a UAV (e.g., such as adefibrillator, a mobile phone, or an HMD), and/or maintaining devices orother items that are housed in the UAV (e.g., by charging adefibrillator, mobile phone, or HMD, or by checking that medicine hasnot expired).

In some embodiments, the deployment systems 412 and their correspondingUAVs 404 (and possibly associated local dispatch systems 410) may bestrategically distributed throughout an area such as a city. Forexample, deployment systems 412 may be located on the roofs of certainmunicipal buildings, such as fire stations, which can thus serve as thedispatch locations for UAVs 404. Fire stations may function well for UAVdispatch, as fire stations tend to be distributed well with respect topopulation density, their roofs tend to be flat, and the use offirehouse roofs as leased spaces for UAV dispatch could further thepublic good. However, deployment systems 412 (and possibly the localdispatch systems 410) may be distributed in other ways, depending uponthe particular implementation.

In a further aspect, a medical-support system 400 may include or haveaccess to a user-account database 414. The user-account database 414 mayinclude data for a number of user-accounts, which are each associatedwith one or more person. For a given user-account, the user-accountdatabase 414 may include data related to the associated person orpersons' medical history and/or may include other data related to theassociated person or persons. Note that the medical-support system mayonly acquire, store, and utilize data related to a person with thatperson's explicit permission to do so.

Further, in some embodiments, a person may have to register for auser-account with the medical-support system 400 in order to use or beprovided with medical support by the UAVs 404 of medical-support system400. As such, the user-account database 414 may include authorizationinformation for a given user-account (e.g., a user-name and password),and/or other information that may be used to authorize access to auser-account.

In some embodiments, a person may associate one or more of their deviceswith their user-account, such that they can be provided with access tothe services of medical-support system 400. For example, when a personuses an associated mobile phone to, e.g., place a call to an operator ofaccess system 402 or send a message requesting medical support to adispatch system, the phone may be identified via a unique deviceidentification number, and the call or message may then be attributed tothe associated user-account. In addition or in the alternative to beingan authorization mechanism, identifying the user-account may allowinformation such as the person's medical history to be used inresponding to their request for medical support.

In a further aspect, the user-account database 414 may include dataindicating a service level for each user. More specifically, amedical-support system 400 may provide service according to a number ofdifferent service levels, which correspond to different types of medicalsupport. For example, a higher service level may: (a) provide access toadditional types of UAVs, (b) provide medical support for additionalmedical situations, (c) provide access to improved support for a givenmedical situation, and/or (d) have priority as far as response time torequests for medical support, as compared to a lower service level.Other differences between a higher and lower service level are alsopossible.

In some embodiments, there may be no individual user accounts associatedwith a medical system; or, user accounts may exist but may not be usedfor purposes of determining whether a person should be provided medicalsupport and/or for purposes of determining the quality of medicalsupport that should be provided. For example, a medical support systemmay be implemented by a municipality or another public entity to providemedical support to citizens for free or at an equal cost. Other examplesare also possible.

IV. Illustrative Components of a Medical-Support UAV

FIG. 5 is a simplified block diagram illustrating components of a UAV500, according to an example embodiment. UAV 500 may take the form of orbe similar in form to one of the UAVs 100, 200, 300, and 350 shown inFIGS. 1, 2, 3A, and 3B. However, a UAV 500 may also take other forms.

UAV 500 may include various types of sensors, and may include acomputing system configured to provide the functionality describedherein. In the illustrated embodiment, the sensors of UAV 500 include aninertial measurement unit (IMU) 502, ultrasonic sensor(s) 504, GPS 506,imaging system(s) 508, among other possible sensors and sensing systems.

In the illustrated embodiment, UAV 500 also includes one or moreprocessors 510. A processor 510 may be a general-purpose processor or aspecial purpose processor (e.g., digital signal processors, applicationspecific integrated circuits, etc.). The one or more processors 510 canbe configured to execute computer-readable program instructions 514 thatare stored in the data storage 512 and are executable to provide thefunctionality of a UAV described herein.

The data storage 512 may include or take the form of one or morecomputer-readable storage media that can be read or accessed by at leastone processor 510. The one or more computer-readable storage media caninclude volatile and/or non-volatile storage components, such asoptical, magnetic, organic or other memory or disc storage, which can beintegrated in whole or in part with at least one of the one or moreprocessors 510. In some embodiments, the data storage 512 can beimplemented using a single physical device (e.g., one optical, magnetic,organic or other memory or disc storage unit), while in otherembodiments, the data storage 512 can be implemented using two or morephysical devices.

As noted, the data storage 512 can include computer-readable programinstructions 514 and perhaps additional data, such as diagnostic data ofthe UAV 500. As such, the data storage 514 may include programinstructions to perform or facilitate some or all of the UAVfunctionality described herein. For instance, in the illustratedembodiment, program instructions 514 include a navigation module 515 andone or more medical-support modules 516.

A. Sensors

In an illustrative embodiment, IMU 502 may include both an accelerometerand a gyroscope, which may be used together to determine the orientationof the UAV 500. In particular, the accelerometer can measure theorientation of the vehicle with respect to earth, while the gyroscopemeasures the rate of rotation around an axis. IMUs are commerciallyavailable in low-cost, low-power packages. For instance, an IMU 502 maytake the form of or include a miniaturized MicroElectroMechanical System(MEMS) or a NanoElectroMechanical System (NEMS). Other types of IMUs mayalso be utilized.

An IMU 502 may include other sensors, in addition to accelerometers andgyroscopes, which may help to better determine position and/or help toincrease autonomy of the UAV 500. Two examples of such sensors aremagnetometers and pressure sensors. Other examples are also possible.(Note that a UAV could also include such additional sensors as separatecomponents from an IMU.)

While an accelerometer and gyroscope may be effective at determining theorientation of the UAV 500, slight errors in measurement may compoundover time and result in a more significant error. However, an exampleUAV 500 may be able mitigate or reduce such errors by using amagnetometer to measure direction. One example of a magnetometer is alow-power, digital 3-axis magnetometer, which can be used to realize anorientation independent electronic compass for accurate headinginformation. However, other types of magnetometers may be utilized aswell.

UAV 500 may also include a pressure sensor or barometer, which can beused to determine the altitude of the UAV 500. Alternatively, othersensors, such as sonic altimeters or radar altimeters, can be used toprovide an indication of altitude, which may help to improve theaccuracy of and/or prevent drift of an IMU.

In a further aspect, UAV 500 may include one or more sensors that allowthe UAV to sense objects in the environment. For instance, in theillustrated embodiment, UAV 500 includes ultrasonic sensor(s) 504.Ultrasonic sensor(s) 504 can determine the distance to an object bygenerating sound waves and determining the time interval betweentransmission of the wave and receiving the corresponding echo off anobject. A typical application of an ultrasonic sensor for unmannedvehicles or IMUs is low-level altitude control and obstacle avoidance.An ultrasonic sensor can also be used for vehicles that need to hover ata certain height or need to be capable of detecting obstacles. Othersystems can be used to determine, sense the presence of, and/ordetermine the distance to nearby objects, such as a light detection andranging (LIDAR) system, laser detection and ranging (LADAR) system,and/or an infrared or forward-looking infrared (FLIR) system, amongother possibilities.

UAV 500 also includes a GPS receiver 506. The GPS receiver 506 may beconfigured to provide data that is typical of well-known GPS systems,such as the GPS coordinates of the UAV 500. Such GPS data may beutilized by the UAV 500 for various functions. For example, when acaller uses a mobile device to request medical support from a UAV, themobile device may provide its GPS coordinates. As such, the UAV may useits GPS receiver 506 to help navigate to the caller's location, asindicated, at least in part, by the GPS coordinates provided by theirmobile device. Other examples are also possible.

UAV 500 may also include one or more imaging system(s) 508. For example,one or more still and/or video cameras may be utilized by a UAV 500 tocapture image data from the UAV's environment. As a specific example,charge-coupled device (CCD) cameras or complementarymetal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) cameras can be used with unmannedvehicles. Such imaging sensor(s) 508 have numerous possibleapplications, such as obstacle avoidance, localization techniques,ground tracking for more accurate navigation (e.g., by applying opticalflow techniques to images), video feedback, and/or image recognition andprocessing, among other possibilities.

In a further aspect, UAV 500 may use its one or more imaging system 508to help in determining location. For example, UAV 500 may captureimagery of its environment and compare it to what it expects to see inits environment given current estimated position (e.g., its current GPScoordinates), and refine its estimate of its position based on thiscomparison.

In a further aspect, UAV 500 may include one or more microphones. Suchmicrophones may be configured to capture sound from the UAVsenvironment.

B. Navigation and Location Determination

The navigation module 515 may provide functionality that allows the UAV500 to, e.g., move about in its environment and reach a desiredlocation. To do so, the navigation module 515 may control the altitudeand/or direction of flight by controlling the mechanical features of theUAV that affect flight (e.g., rotors 110 of UAV 100).

In order to navigate the UAV 500 to a target location, a navigationmodule 515 may implement various navigation techniques, such asmap-based navigation and localization-based navigation, for instance.With map-based navigation, the UAV 500 may be provided with a map of itsenvironment, which may then be used to navigate to a particular locationon the map. With localization-based navigation, the UAV 500 may becapable of navigating in an unknown environment using localization.Localization-based navigation may involve a UAV 500 building its own mapof its environment and calculating its position within the map and/orthe position of objects in the environment. For example, as a UAV 500moves throughout its environment, the UAV 500 may continuously uselocalization to update its map of the environment. This continuousmapping process may be referred to as simultaneous localization andmapping (SLAM). Other navigation techniques may also be utilized.

In some embodiments, the navigation module 515 may navigate using atechnique that relies on waypoints. In particular, waypoints are sets ofcoordinates that identify points in physical space. For instance, anair-navigation waypoint may be defined by a certain latitude, longitude,and altitude. Accordingly, navigation module 515 may cause UAV 500 tomove from waypoint to waypoint, in order to ultimately travel to a finaldestination (e.g., a final waypoint in a sequence of waypoints).

In a further aspect, navigation module 515 and/or other components andsystems of UAV 500 may be configured for “localization” to moreprecisely navigate to the scene of a medical situation. Morespecifically, it may be desirable in certain situations for a UAV to beclose to the person in need of medical support (e.g., within reach ofthe person), so as to properly provide medical support to the person. Tothis end, a UAV may use a two-tiered approach in which it uses amore-general location-determination technique to navigate to a targetlocation or area that is associated with the medical situation, and thenuse a more-refined location-determination technique to identify and/ornavigate to the target location within the general area.

For example, a UAV 500 may navigate to the general area of a person inneed using waypoints that are pre-determined based on GPS coordinatesprovided by a remote device at the scene of the medical situation. TheUAV may then switch to mode in which it utilizes a localization processto locate and travel to a specific location of the person in need. Forexample, if a person is having a heart attack at a large stadium, a UAV500 carrying a medical package may need to be within reach of the personor someone near the person so that the can take items from the package.However, a GPS signal may only get a UAV so far, e.g., to the stadium. Amore precise location-determination technique may then be used to findthe specific location of the person within the stadium.

Various types of location-determination techniques may be used toaccomplish localization of a person once a UAV 500 has navigated to thegeneral area of the person. For instance, a UAV 500 may be equipped withone or more sensory systems, such as, for example, imaging system(s)508, a directional microphone array (not shown), ultrasonic sensors 504,infrared sensors (not shown), and/or other sensors, which may provideinput that the navigation module 515 utilizes to navigate autonomouslyor semi-autonomously to the specific location of a person.

As another example, once the UAV 500 reaches the general area of theperson, the UAV 500 may switch to a “fly-by-wire” mode where it iscontrolled, at least in part, by a remote operator, who can navigate theUAV 500 to the specific location of the person in need. To this end,sensory data from the UAV 500 may be sent to the remote operator toassist them in navigating the UAV to the specific location. For example,the UAV 500 may stream a video feed or a sequence of still images fromthe UAV's imaging system(s) 508. Other examples are possible.

As yet another example, the UAV 500 may include a module that is able tosignal to a passer-by for assistance in either reaching the specificlocation or delivering its medical-support items to the medicalsituation; for example, by displaying a visual message in a graphicdisplay, playing an audio message or tone through speakers, flashing alight, or performing a combination of such functions. Such visual oraudio message might indicate that assistance is needed in delivering theUAV 500 to the person in need, and might provide information to assistthe passer-by in delivering the UAV 500 to the person, such adescription of the person, the person's name, and/or a description ofthe person's specific location, among other possibilities. Thisimplementation can be useful in a scenario in which the UAV is unable touse sensory functions or another location-determination technique todetermine the specific location of the person.

As an additional example, once a UAV 500 arrives at the general area ofa person, the UAV may utilize a beacon from the remote device (e.g., themobile phone of a person who called for medical support) to locate theperson. Such a beacon may take various forms. As an example, considerthe scenario where a remote device, such as the mobile phone of a personin need or a bystander, is able to send out directional signals (e.g.,an RF signal, a light signal and/or an audio signal). In this scenario,the UAV may be configured to navigate by “sourcing” such directionalsignals—in other words, by determining where the signal is strongest andnavigating accordingly. As another example, a mobile device can emit afrequency, either in the human range or outside the human range, and theUAV can listen for that frequency and navigate accordingly. As a relatedexample, if the UAV is listening for spoken commands, then the UAV couldutilize spoken statements, such as “Help! I'm over here!” to source thespecific location of the person in need of medical assistance.

In an alternative arrangement, a navigation module may be implemented ata remote computing device, which communicates wirelessly with the UAV.The remote computing device may receive data indicating the operationalstate of the UAV, sensor data from the UAV that allows it to assess theenvironmental conditions being experienced by the UAV, and/or locationinformation for the UAV. Provided with such information, the remotecomputing device may determine altitudinal and/or directionaladjustments that should be made by the UAV and/or may determine how theUAV should adjust its mechanical features (e.g., rotors 110 of UAV 100)in order to effectuate such movements. The remote computing system maythen communicate such adjustments to the UAV so it can move in thedetermined manner.

C. Communication Systems

In a further aspect, UAV 500 includes one or more communication systems520. The communications systems 520 may include one or more wirelessinterfaces and/or one or more wireline interfaces, which allow UAV 500to communicate via one or more networks. Such wireless interfaces mayprovide for communication under one or more wireless communicationprotocols, such as Bluetooth, WiFi (e.g., an IEEE 802.11 protocol),Long-Term Evolution (LTE), WiMAX (e.g., an IEEE 802.16 standard), aradio-frequency ID (RFID) protocol, near-field communication (NFC),and/or other wireless communication protocols. Such wireline interfacesmay include an Ethernet interface, a Universal Serial Bus (USB)interface, or similar interface to communicate via a wire, a twistedpair of wires, a coaxial cable, an optical link, a fiber-optic link, orother physical connection to a wireline network.

In an example embodiment, a UAV 500 may include communication systems520 that allow for both short-range communication and long-rangecommunication. For example, the UAV 500 may be configured forshort-range communications using Bluetooth and for long-rangecommunications under a CDMA protocol. In such an embodiment, the UAV 500may be configured to function as a “hot spot;” or in other words, as agateway or proxy between a remote support device and one or more datanetworks, such as cellular network and/or the Internet. Configured assuch, the UAV 500 may facilitate data communications that the remotesupport device would otherwise be unable to perform by itself.

For example, UAV 500 may provide a WiFi connection to a remote device,and serve as a proxy or gateway to a cellular service provider's datanetwork, which the UAV might connect to under an LTE or a 3G protocol,for instance. The UAV 500 could also serve as a proxy or gateway to ahigh-altitude balloon network, a satellite network, or a combination ofthese networks, among others, which a remote device might not be able tootherwise access.

D. Power Systems

In a further aspect, UAV 500 may include power system(s) 521. A powersystem 521 may include one or more batteries for providing power to theUAV 500. In one example, the one or more batteries may be rechargeableand each battery may be recharged via a wired connection between thebattery and a power supply and/or via a wireless charging system, suchas an inductive charging system that applies an external time-varyingmagnetic field to an internal battery.

E. Medical-Support Functionality

As noted above, UAV 500 may include one or more medical-support modules516. The one or more medical-support modules 516 include software,firmware, and/or hardware that may help to provide or assist in theprovision of the medical-support functionality described herein.

Configured as such, a UAV 500 may provide medical support in variousways. For instance, a UAV 500 may have stored information that can beprovided to a person or persons at the target location, in order toassist the person or persons in providing medical care. For example, aUAV may include a video or audio file with instructions for providingmedical support, which the UAV can play out to a person at the targetlocation. As another example, a UAV may include an interactive programto assist a person at the target location in providing medical support.For instance, a UAV may include an application that analyzes theperson's speech to detect questions related to the medical situationand/or that provides a text-based interface via which the person can asksuch questions, and then determines and provides answers to suchquestions.

In some embodiments, a UAV 500 may facilitate communication between alayperson and/or medical personnel at the scene and medical personnel ata remote location. As an example, a medical support module 516 mayprovide a user interface via which a person at the scene can use acommunication system 520 of the UAV to communicate with an emergencymedical technician at a remote location. As another example, the UAV 500can unlock certain capabilities of a remote device, such as a mobilephone, which is near the UAV at the scene of a medical situation. Suchcapabilities may be inaccessible to a user of the remote device, unlessthe remote device is within a certain distance from the UAV such thatthe UAV can unlock the capabilities. For example, a UAV may send theremote device a security key that allows the remote device to establisha secure connection to communicate with medical personnel at a remotelocation. Other examples are also possible.

Further, in order to provide medical support at a remote location, a UAV500 may be configured to transport items to the scene of a medicalsituation. Such items may aid in diagnosing and/or treating a person whoneeds medical assistance, or may serve other purposes. Such items mayinclude, as examples: (a) medicines, (b) diagnostic devices, such as apulse oximeter, blood pressure sensor, or EKG sensor, (c) treatmentdevices, such as an EpiPen, a first aid kit, or various kinds ofdefibrillators (e.g., an automated external defibrillator (AED)), and/or(d) remote support devices, such as a mobile phone or a head-mountabledevice (HMD), among other possibilities. Note that some items that areelectronic may include one or more batteries to provide power to theitem. These batteries may be rechargeable and may be recharged using oneor more wired or wireless charging systems. In addition or on in thealternative, an item may be integrated with one or more batteries in thepower system 521 for power.

A UAV 500 may employ various systems and configurations in order totransport items to the scene of a medical situation. For example, asshown in FIG. 1, a UAV 100 can include a compartment 135, in which anitem or items may be transported. As another example, the UAV caninclude a pick-and-place mechanism, which can pick up and hold the itemwhile the UAV is in flight, and then release the item during or afterthe UAV's descent. As yet another example, a UAV could include anair-bag drop system, a parachute drop system, and/or a winch system thatis operable from high above a medical situation to drop or lower an itemor items to the scene of the medical situation. Other examples are alsopossible.

In some implementations, a given UAV 500 may include a “package”designed for a particular medical situation (or possibly for aparticular set of medical situations). A package may include one or moreitems for medical support in the particular medical situation, and/orone or more medical-support modules 516 that are designed to providemedical support in the particular medical situation. In some cases, aUAV 500 may include a package that is designed for a particular medicalsituation such as choking, cardiac arrest, shock, asthma, drowning, etc.

In other cases, a UAV 500 may include a package that is designed for anumber of different medical situations, which may be associated in someway. For example, a dive-accident package may be designed to provide orassist in provision of care in various medical situations that are oftenassociated with a scuba diving accident, such as drowning and/ordecompression sickness. Such a dive-accident package might include aflotation device, an oxygen-therapy system, a system for deliveringvisual and/or audible medical care instructions (e.g., instructions forperforming CPR), and/or a signaling device, among other possibilities. AUAV 500 that is configured with such a dive-accident package may bereferred to herein as a “dive-rescue” UAV. Such a dive-rescue UAV may bedeployed to a diver on the surface of the water, who has just had anaccident while scuba diving, with the hope that the UAV can reach thediver and deliver medical treatment sooner than would otherwise bepossible.

For instance, provided with the above dive-accident package, the UAV 500may drop a flotation device to help the diver stay afloat until thediver can be reached by rescuers. In addition, the UAV may include asignaling device, which can be automatically turned on when the UAVlocates the diver. Doing so may help a rescue boat locate a diver morequickly. Further, once the diver has been rescued, the UAV may displayvisual instructions and/or play back auditory instructions for CPR,which may help to revive a drowning victim. Such instructions may beparticularly useful in the case where the diver is rescued bynon-medical professionals; if the diver is rescued by a passing fishingboat, for example.

Further, when the UAV arrives at the scene of a dive accident or, morelikely, once the diver has been moved to a rescue boat, the UAV couldprovide an oxygen-therapy system, and possibly instructions for usethereof, in order to treat possible decompression sickness. Since arescue boat might not have oxygen-therapy system, and immediateadministration of pure oxygen has been shown to increase the probabilityof recovering from decompression sickness, such functionality of a UAVcould improve treatment for a diver suffering from decompressionsickness.

In some embodiments, a UAV 500 could include an integrated system ordevice for administering or assisting in the administration of medicalcare (e.g., a system or device having one or more components that arebuilt in to the structure of the UAV itself). For example, as notedabove, a UAV could include an oxygen-therapy system. In an exampleconfiguration, an oxygen-therapy system might include a mask that isconnected via tubing to an on-board oxygen source. Configured as such,the UAV could release the oxygen mask when it reaches a person in needof oxygen (e.g., at a fire scene).

As another example of a UAV with an integrated medical-support device, aUAV 500 might function as a mobile defibrillator. Specifically, ratherthan carry a stand-alone defibrillator that can then be removed from theUAV for use, the UAV itself may function as a defibrillator.

As a specific example, a multicopter might include components of an AEDthat is built into its body, as well as retractable electrode pads foradministering a shock to a person who is experiencing a cardiac event orarrest. When the multicopter arrives at the scene of cardiac arrest, themulticopter may land, disable its rotors, and enter a mode where itfunctions as an AED. Specifically, after landing, the multicopter mayrelease its retractable electrode pads and provide instructions so thata bystander, who might be layperson, could use the electrode pads toadminister care to the person with a cardiac arrest. Such instructionsmay be provided, for example, by displaying text and/or video on agraphic display that is built in to the body of the multicopter, and/orby playing back audio instructions. The multicopter could also include awireless communication interface via which a bystander could communicatewith a live remote operator (e.g., a medical professional at a remotelocation), in order to receive instructions for using the AED.

Many other examples and variations on the above examples of UAVs withintegrated medical-support systems and devices are also possible. Forinstance, a medical device may be integrated into the structure of a UAVitself when doing so reduces weight, improves aerodynamics, and/orsimplifies the use of the device by a person at the scene of the medicalsituation. Further, those skilled in the art will appreciate that amedical-support system or device may be integrated in the structure of aUAV in other situations and for other reasons.

In some applications, a UAV 500 may be dispatched to the scene of amedical situation to provide early intelligence to medical personnel. Inparticular, a UAV 500 may be dispatched because it is expected to reachthe location of a medical situation more rapidly than medical personnelare able to. In this scenario, the UAV 500 may arrive at the scene andprovide early intelligence by communicating information and providingsituational awareness to medical personnel. For example, a UAV 500 mayuse its imaging system(s) 508 to capture video and/or still images atthe scene of the medical situation, which the UAV 500 may communicate tomedical and/or emergency personnel. As another example, UAV 500 couldadminister preliminary tests to a person in need, or request that abystander administer certain preliminary diagnostic tests and/or providecertain information. UAV 500 may then send such test results and/or suchinformation provided by a bystander to medical and/or emergencypersonnel. A UAV 500 may provide other types of early-intelligenceinformation as well.

By providing early intelligence to medical and/or emergency personnel, aUAV 500 may help the medical and/or emergency personnel to prepare toprovide care, such that more effective care can be provided once thepersonnel arrive at the scene. For instance, a UAV 500 could send video,test results, and/or bystander-provided information to medical personnelwhile they are travelling in an ambulance on their way to the scene, tofiremen or other personnel while they are in a fire truck on their wayto the scene, and/or to police they are in a law-enforcement vehicle ontheir way to the scene, among other possibilities.

It should be understood that the examples of medical-supportfunctionality that are provided herein are not intended to be limited. AUAV may be configured to provide other types of medical-supportfunctionality without departing from the scope of the invention.

V. Illustrative Methods

FIG. 6 is a flow chart illustrating a method 600, according to anexample embodiment. Illustrative methods, such as method 600, may becarried out in whole or in part by a component or components in amedical-support system, such as by the one or more of the components ofthe medical-support system 400 shown in FIG. 4. For simplicity, method600 may be described generally as being carried out by a medical-supportsystem, such as by one or more of an access system 402, a centraldispatch system 408, a local dispatch system 410, and/or a deploymentsystem 412. However, it should be understood that example methods, suchas method 600, may be carried out by other entities or combinations ofentities (i.e., by other computing devices and/or combinations ofcomputing devices), without departing from the scope of the invention.

As shown by block 602, method 600 involves a medical-support systemidentifying a remote medical situation. The medical-support system mayalso determine the target location corresponding to the medicalsituation, as shown by block 604. The medical-support system can thenselect a UAV from a plurality of UAVs, where the selection of the UAV isbased at least in part on a determination that the selected UAV isconfigured for the identified medical situation, as shown by 606. Morespecifically, in an illustrative embodiment, the medical-support systemmay have a number of UAVs available for dispatch, which are configuredfor a number of different medical situations (with some or all of theUAVs being configured differently from one another). Accordingly, atblock 606, the medical-support system may select the particular UAV thatis appropriate for the identified medical situation. The medical-supportsystem may then cause the selected UAV to travel to the target locationto provide medical support, as shown by block 608.

A. Identifying a Remote Medical Situation

Various types of medical situations may be identified at block 602 ofmethod 600. For example, a medical-support system could identify amedical situation such as the occurrence of a heart attack, a stroke, ananaphylactic shock, a broken bone, heat stroke, or any of a large numberof other medical situations. More generally, a medical situation may beany situation where a person or possibly even an animal (e.g., a pet dogor cat) might benefit from medical support or treatment.

In some embodiments, however, a medical-support system may place morestringent requirements on what is classified as a medical situation towhich a UAV should be dispatched. In particular, since deploying andoperating an UAV may be costly, a medical-support system may onlydispatch a UAV in a situation where the UAV is expected to provide moreimmediate and/or superior medical support, as compared to traditionalemergency response services. In some embodiments, the medical-supportsystem may even engage in cost-benefit analysis to determine whether theexpected benefit of sending a UAV outweighs the expense of doing so.Other criteria for determining what is and is not considered a medicalsituation that justifies use of a UAV are also possible, and may varydepending upon the particular implementation.

In other embodiments, the benefit of having a UAV there slightly earliermay be great enough that the UAV may be deployed as soon as a possiblemedical situation is reported; without waiting to determine whether theuse of a UAV is justified. Then, at a later time (e.g., 30-60 secondsafter launch), the medical-support system may have a betterunderstanding as to whether or not the possible medical situation is infact a medical situation to which a UAV should be deployed. If it isnot, then the UAV may recalled; or the UAV may automatically return ifit does not receive a message indicating that it should continue to thelocation of the medical situation.

At block 602, the identification of the remote medical situation mayinvolve a component of the medical-support system receiving acommunication that originated from a remote device, and identifying theremote medical situation based on information provided by thecommunication. Such a communication may take various forms, such as aphone call, a text-message, or an electronic message generated by anapplication of a remote device, as just a few examples. In someembodiments, an automated computer program on a remote device may act asa notifier and initiate a communication to report a medical situation.For example, a body-monitoring device may detect a possible medicalsituation, such as a stroke or heart attack, and automatically notify amedical support system. Other examples are also possible.

In some embodiments, the communication may include location information,such as GPS coordinates of the remote device. Such location informationmay be utilized at block 604 to determine the location of the remotedevice, which may in turn be assumed to be or otherwise used todetermine the location of medical situation.

Further, in order to identify what the particular medical situation is,the medical-support system may utilize information provided via thecommunication from the remote device. Specifically, such information maybe used in an effort to better identify the type of medical situationsthat is at issue, or to identify a class of medical situations for whichthe person's medical situation likely qualifies. In some embodiments,this information may be provided by the person operating the remotedevice, who may be referred to herein as the “notifier.” For instance, anotifier might provide information such as the observed symptoms of theperson in need (e.g., “my friend just collapsed and is convulsing” or “Iam having chest pains”). In some instances, the notifier might purportto convey the type of medical emergency itself (“my brother is having astroke!”). Further, a notifier might provide location information and/orother types of information related to a medical situation.

The information provided via the communication from the remote devicemay take various forms. For example, the notifier may provideinformation via a voice call, in which case they can simply speak with alive operator (e.g., a live operator at access system 402).Alternatively, a speech-to-text module could be implemented by themedical-support system to convert the speech from a phone call to text,which can then be analyzed to derive the information about the medicalsituation. Information related to a medical situation may also beprovided via text, such as via a text message or a message that isgenerated via an application on the remote device.

In some embodiments, the medical-support system may obtain informationfrom image data that is captured at the scene of a medical situation,which may then be used to determine what the particular medicalsituation is. Such image data may be captured by and/or sent from aremote device at the scene of the medical situation. In particular, anotifier may use the camera of their mobile phone to capture and sendvideo and/or still images to the medical-support system, possibly inreal-time. As examples, a bystander may capture an image or video of aninjured limb, or possibly even video of an accident taking place, andsuch image data to the medical-support system. Other examples arepossible.

In some embodiments, the information provided by the notifier mayinclude other types of data. For example, a remote device may include anapplication for reporting a medical situation and/or requesting medicalsupport. Such an application may provide a UI with features that allow auser of the remote device to quickly provide information relating to amedical situation. For instance, a user could hit a button to indicatewhat type of medical situation they believe to be occurring, selectcheckboxes from a symptoms checklist to indicate observed symptoms, andso on. Further, such an application may allow the user to initiate acommunication to relay data indicating the provided information to amedical-support system. Other examples are also possible.

In some embodiments, the information provided by the notifier can beused in combination with other information that is known or accessibleto the medical-support system. As an example, consider a scenario wherea notifier, who is at the beach on a 100-degree day, calls themedical-support system from their mobile phone and says, “someone herejust collapsed!” The medical-support system may then determine thelocation of the mobile phone, use enhanced mapping data to determinethat the mobile phone's location is at a beach, and look up the currenttemperature at the determined location. Then, using the notifier'sspoken information, together with the local temperature and the factthat location information corresponds to a beach, the medical-supportsystem may deduce that the medical situation is likely to be heatexhaustion or a related condition.

In the embodiments described above, block 602 involves themedical-support system using various types of information to activelydetermining what the particular medical situation is likely to be. Asanother example, and referring to FIG. 4, when a remote device 406contacts an operator at an access system 402 to report a medicalsituation, the access system may automatically extract and analyzeinformation from the communication to identify what the medicalsituation is, or determine a list of possible medical situations basedon the available information. The access system 402 may then display anindication of the identified medical situation or the list of possiblemedical situations, so that the operator can confirm or select themedical situation they believe is occurring and, if appropriate,instruct the dispatch system (e.g., central dispatch system 408) to senda UAV. Alternatively, when the access system positively identifies aparticular medical situation, the access system may automaticallyinstruct the dispatch system to dispatch a UAV, without requestingauthorization from an operator.

Note that in some cases, the identification of the remote medicalsituation could simply involve the medical-support system receiving acommunication that indicates what the medical situation is. In otherwords, the medical-support system may identify the medical situation bypassively being told what it is by a remote device or by a humanoperator of the medical-support system (e.g., a live operator at accesssystem 402), for example.

B. Determining the Target Location

As noted above, block 604 of method 600 involves a medical-supportsystem determining a target location that corresponds to the identifiedmedical situation. For example, when an emergency-response service isnotified of a medical situation, the service will likely need todetermine the general location of the person in need, so that a UAV canbe deployed to assist the person.

In some embodiments, the target location may be the location of theperson or persons who are likely to benefit from medical support in thegiven medical situation (or an estimate of such person or persons'location or locations). For example, if a person who is need of medicalcare places an emergency call from their own mobile phone, the targetlocation may be determined to be or otherwise based on the location oftheir mobile phone. As another example, if a bystander places anemergency call from their mobile phone in order to report a medicalsituation that involves another person, it may be assumed or otherwisedetermined that the bystander is at or near the location of the otherperson. Accordingly, the target location may be set to (or otherwisedetermined from) the location of the bystander's mobile phone.

In other embodiments, the target location may be different from thelocation of the person or persons who are likely to benefit from medicalsupport. For example, consider a scenario where an emergency medicaltechnician (EMT) or paramedic is closer to the location of a person inneed of medical support, but the EMT or paramedic does not have certainmedical supplies that are needed for or might improve the medical carethat can be provided. In this scenario, a medical-support system maydispatch a UAV to the location of the EMT or paramedic in order todeliver medical supplies to the EMT or paramedic, so that they can takethem with them to the scene of the medical situation. Further, in somecases, the UAV might even be configured to deliver the medical suppliesto the EMT or paramedic as they travel to the scene of the medicalsituation. In such case, the target location (e.g., the location of theEMT or paramedic) may be dynamically updated to reflect the movement ofthe EMT or paramedic as they travel to the scene.

The target location may be determined in a number of ways, and may bebased on various types of location information. For instance, in someembodiments, the target location may be determined based on informationthat is provided by the remote device from which the indication of themedical situation was received. For example, consider a scenario where abystander calls “911” and says “Somebody near me just collapsed!”Typically, when receiving a phone call, the police also receive locationinformation, such as GPS coordinates, which identify the location of theremote device. This location information may then be made available to amedical-support system or otherwise accessible for purposes ofdetermining the target location. For example, when a remote device callsto report a medical situation, an operator at an access system or anautomated dispatch system could determine the location of the remotedevice based on such received GPS coordinates.

A medical-support system may determine and/or be provided withinformation that the can be used to determine the target location inother ways. For instance, in some embodiments, part or all of theprocess of determining the target location could be automated or, inother words, performed without a need for human intervention. To thisend, the medical-support system could utilize any suitableinformation-recognition technique, such as, for example, voicerecognition (when the notification is spoken) or character recognition(when the notification is typed), among other techniques now known orlater developed. As an example, consider a scenario where a bystandercalls “911” and says: “Somebody near me just collapsed! I'm at 123 MainStreet, Mountain View.” In this situation, an automated dispatch systemcould apply speech-to-text processing to analyze the bystander's wordsand determine the stated address therefrom.

The above techniques for determining such target locations are providedfor illustrative purposes and not intended to be limiting. It should beunderstood that other techniques may be used to determine a targetlocation, to which a UAV may be dispatched by a medical-support system.

C. Selecting an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle

As noted above, at block 606 of method 600, a medical-support system mayselect a UAV that is configured to provide medical support for theparticular medical situation. In particular, an medical-support systemmay include or have access to a number of different types of UAVs, whichare configured to provide medical support in various different medicalscenarios. As such, different UAVs may be said to have a different“medical-support configurations.” Thus, block 606 may involve amedical-support system selecting a UAV that has a medical-supportconfiguration that is likely to provide or assist in providing medicalsupport for the particular medical situation.

In some cases, the medical-support configuration of a given type of UAVmay include a package of one or more items that are designed to provideor assist in providing medical support for a certain medical situation.For example, a given type of UAV could include Aspirin and adefibrillator, and thus might be selected as an appropriate UAV todeploy when the medical-support system receives an indication that aheart attack or cardiac arrest is occurring or has just occurred. Manyother examples are also possible.

Additionally or alternatively, the medical-support configuration of agiven type of UAV may include one or more operational functions that aredesigned to provide or assist in medical support for the remote medicalsituation. For instance, a UAV may include wireless communicationcapabilities that allow remote medical personnel to assist those at thescene. For instance, a UAV might include in its package, a mobile phoneor HMD, via which a bystander can communicate with and receiveinstructions from remote medical personnel, such that the bystander canbe informed how to, e.g., provide care to a person who is injured or issuffering from a medical condition. As another example, a UAV mayinclude program logic (e.g., medical support module(s) 416) that allowthe UAV to perform certain diagnostic tests, in which the UAV analyzesdata acquired from certain sensory systems of the UAV. Other examplesare also possible.

In some embodiments, the selection of a UAV may be based, at least inpart, on the particular person to whom medical support is going to beprovided. For example, the medical-support system may determine that aparticular user-account is associated with the medical situation. Themedical-support system may then determine a service level for theparticular user-account, and use the service level as a basis to selectthe UAV.

For example, there may be several UAVs that could be deployed to providemedical support in a particular medical situation. However, for variousreasons, a particular one of the UAVs may only be deployed to someonewho was paid for or otherwise is entitled to a higher service level.Accordingly, the particular UAV may only be selected if a personinvolved in the medical situation is authorized for the higher servicelevel. Note that in some cases, the service level attributed to aparticular communication may be that to which the person to whom themedical support is being provided by a UAV (e.g., the victim of anaccident) is entitled. However, in other cases, the service level may bethat of someone other than a person in need of medical care. Forexample, a family member, friend, or even a bystander to a medicalsituation, may have a particular service level that allows them torequest medical support corresponding to the particular service level,on the behalf of another person in need.

The particular user-account may be determined in various ways. Forexample, a person may link their computing devices, such as their mobilephones, to a user-account for medical support. Accordingly, themedical-support system may determine an identification number for theremote device that provides the indication of the medical situation, anduse the identification number to look up the associated medical-supportuser-account. Alternatively, the person who requests medical support mayprovide identification and/or log-in information, so that amedical-support user-account may be identified and/or verified by themedical-support system. Other techniques for determining the particularuser-account are also possible.

In a further aspect, medical history and/or other information related tothe particular person in need of medical support may be utilized toselect an appropriate UAV. For example, delivery of prescriptionmedications by non-physicians may be strictly regulated, even inemergency situations. To facilitate the verification and delivery ofsuch medications, a medical-support system may include an opt-inregistry, which includes persons' names and a list of medications forwhich each person has a current prescription. To facilitate diagnosis,the opt-in registry may further include a list of an individual's knownmedical conditions that may lead to emergency care. In practice, a givenuser-account may indicate such prescription-authorization information,known medical conditions, and/or other medical information for theperson. Accordingly, an medical-support system may access theuser-account for a person in need of medical support to determinewhether or not they have a prescription for a particular medication,such that a UAV including the particular medication can be dispatched.

D. Dispatching the Selected UAV

As noted above, block 608 of method 600 involves a medical-supportsystem causing the selected UAV to travel to the target location toprovide medical support, as shown by block 608. This function may beaccomplished in various ways, depending upon the particularimplementation.

In some embodiments, block 608 may simply involve a component of themedical-support system sending a message to another entity to indicatethat the selected UAV should be deployed. For example, if method 600 iscarried out by an access system 402, the access system may identify themedical situation, select an appropriate type of UAV, and send a messageto the central dispatch system 408, which indicates that a UAV of theselected type should be dispatched to the target location. As anotherexample, if method 600 is carried out by a central dispatch system 408,the central dispatch system may identify the medical situation, selectan appropriate type of UAV, and send a message to the local dispatchsystem 408 that indicates that a UAV of the selected type should bedispatched to the target location. In either case, the central dispatchsystem 408 may then relay the message to the appropriate local dispatchsystem 410, which may operate a deployment system to launch the selectedUAV.

In some embodiments, block 608 may involve one or more components of themedical-support system sending a message to instruct a deployment systemto launch the selected UAV, or directly operating the deployment systemto launch the selected UAV. Further, block 608 could involve one or morecomponents of the medical-support system preparing the selected UAV totravel to the target location, such as by determining and setting waypoints to allow the UAV to navigate to the target location.

VI. Conclusion

Where example embodiments involve information related to a person or adevice of a person, the embodiments should be understood to includeprivacy controls. Such privacy controls include, at least, anonymizationof device identifiers, transparency and user controls, includingfunctionality that would enable users to modify or delete informationrelating to the user's use of a product.

Further, in situations in where embodiments discussed herein collectpersonal information about users, or may make use of personalinformation, the users may be provided with an opportunity to controlwhether programs or features collect user information (e.g., informationabout a user's medical history, social network, social actions oractivities, profession, a user's preferences, or a user's currentlocation), or to control whether and/or how to receive content from thecontent server that may be more relevant to the user. In addition,certain data may be treated in one or more ways before it is stored orused, so that personally identifiable information is removed. Forexample, a user's identity may be treated so that no personallyidentifiable information can be determined for the user, or a user'sgeographic location may be generalized where location information isobtained (such as to a city, ZIP code, or state level), so that aparticular location of a user cannot be determined. Thus, the user mayhave control over how information is collected about the user and usedby a content server.

The particular arrangements shown in the Figures should not be viewed aslimiting. It should be understood that other embodiments may includemore or less of each element shown in a given Figure. Further, some ofthe illustrated elements may be combined or omitted. Yet further, anexemplary embodiment may include elements that are not illustrated inthe Figures.

Additionally, while various aspects and embodiments have been disclosedherein, other aspects and embodiments will be apparent to those skilledin the art. The various aspects and embodiments disclosed herein are forpurposes of illustration and are not intended to be limiting, with thetrue scope and spirit being indicated by the following claims. Otherembodiments may be utilized, and other changes may be made, withoutdeparting from the spirit or scope of the subject matter presentedherein. It will be readily understood that the aspects of the presentdisclosure, as generally described herein, and illustrated in thefigures, can be arranged, substituted, combined, separated, and designedin a wide variety of different configurations, all of which arecontemplated herein.

We claim:
 1. A computer-implemented method comprising: identifying, by aprocessor, a remote situation; determining, by the processor, a targetlocation corresponding to the identified remote situation; selecting, bythe processor, a first unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) from a plurality ofUAVs that are configured to provide support for a plurality of remotesituations, wherein the plurality of UAVs comprises at least the firstUAV and a second UAV, wherein the first UAV is configured to providesupport for a first remote situation and the second UAV configured toprovide support for a second remote situation, and wherein the selectionof the first UAV is based at least in part on a determination that thefirst UAV is better configured to provide support for the identifiedremote situation than at least one other UAV, from the plurality ofUAVs; determining, by the processor, that an expected benefit of sendingthe first UAV to the target location outweighs a cost of sending thefirst UAV to the target location; and in response to determining thatthe expected benefit outweighs the cost, causing the first UAV to: (a)travel to the target location in a forward-flight mode to providesupport for the identified remote situation, (b) transition to a hoverflight mode when the first UAV is located at or near to the targetlocation, and (c) while in the hover flight mode at or near to thetarget location, provide at least some support for the identified remotesituation, wherein, to provide at least some support for the identifiedremote situation while in the hover flight mode, the first UAV uses awinch to lower one or more support items to a ground at or near thetarget location.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein identifying theremote situation comprises: receiving a communication that originatedfrom a remote device; and identifying the remote situation based oninformation provided by the communication.
 3. The method of claim 2,wherein the communication comprises at least one of: (a) a phone call,(b) a text-message, and (c) an electronic message generated by anapplication of the remote device.
 4. The method of claim 2, wherein theinformation provided by the communication comprises locationinformation.
 5. The method of claim 2, wherein the information providedby the communication comprises information related to the identifiedremote situation.
 6. The method of claim 2, wherein determining thetarget location comprises receiving, from the remote device, a messagethat indicates a location of the remote device.
 7. The method of claim1, wherein selecting the UAV from the plurality of UAVs comprises:determining a type of the identified remote situation; and selecting,from the plurality of UAVs, a UAV that has a support configuration toprovide or assist in support for the determined type of the identifiedremote situation.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein the supportconfiguration comprises one or more items to provide or assist insupport for the identified remote situation.
 9. The method of claim 1,wherein identifying the remote situation comprises: receiving acommunication from a remote device, wherein the communication identifiesthe remote situation and requests support; and during travel to thetarget location searching for a beacon signal from the remote device,wherein the transition to the hover flight mode is performed at least inpart in response to detecting the beacon signal from the remote device.10. A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereininstructions that are executable to cause a processor to performfunctions comprising: identifying, a remote situation; determining atarget location corresponding to the identified remote situation;selecting a first unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) from a plurality of UAVsthat are configured to provide support for a plurality of remotesituations, wherein the plurality of UAVs comprises at least the firstUAV configured to provide support for a first remote situation and asecond UAV configured to provide support for a second remote situation,and wherein the selection of the UAV is based at least in part on adetermination that the first UAV is better configured to provide supportfor the identified remote situation than at least one other UAV, fromthe plurality of UAVs; determining that an expected benefit of sendingthe first UAV to the target location outweighs a cost of sending thefirst UAV to the target location; and in response to determining thatthe expected benefit outweighs the cost, causing the first UAV to: (a)travel in a forward-flight mode to the target location to providesupport for the identified remote situation, (b) transition to a hoverflight mode when the first UAV is located at or near to the targetlocation, and (c) while in the hover flight mode at or near to thetarget location, provide at least some support for the identified remotesituation, wherein, to provide at least some support for the identifiedremote situation while in the hover flight mode, the first UAV uses awinch to lower one or more support items to a ground at or near thetarget location.
 11. The non-transitory computer readable medium ofclaim 10, further having stored therein instructions that are executableto cause a processor to perform functions comprising: determining a typeof the identified remote situation; and selecting, from the plurality ofUAVs, a UAV that has a support configuration to provide or assist insupport for the determined type of the identified remote situation. 12.The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 10, whereinselecting the UAV from the plurality of UAVs comprises: determining auser-account associated with the identified remote situation;determining a service level for the user-account; and using the servicelevel as a further basis to select the UAV.
 13. A situational-supportsystem comprising: at least one processor; at least one non-transitorycomputer readable medium in at least one component of the system; andprogram instructions stored in the at least one non-transitory computerreadable medium and executable by at least one processor to cause thesituational support system to: identify a remote situation; determine atarget location corresponding to the identified remote situation; selecta first unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) from a plurality of UAVs that areconfigured to provide support for a plurality of remote situations,wherein the plurality of UAVs comprises at least the first UAVconfigured to provide support for a first remote situation and a secondUAV configured to provide support for a second remote situation, andwherein the selection of the first UAV is based at least in part on adetermination that the first UAV is better configured to provide supportfor the identified remote situation than at least one other UAV, fromthe plurality of UAVs; determine that an expected benefit of sending thefirst UAV to the target location outweighs a cost of sending the firstUAV to the target location; and in response to determining that theexpected benefit outweighs the cost, cause the first UAV to: (a) travelin a forward-flight mode to the target location to provide support forthe identified remote situation, (b) transition to a hover flight modewhen the first UAV is located at or near to the target location, and (c)while in the hover flight mode, provide at least some support for theidentified remote situation, wherein, to provide at least some supportfor the identified remote situation while in the hover flight mode, thefirst UAV uses a winch to lower one or more support items to a ground ator near the target location.
 14. The system of claim 13, furthercomprising at least one component having the at least one non-transitorycomputer readable medium, wherein the at least one component comprisesone or more of: (a) one or more access systems and (b) one or moredispatch systems, and (c) one or more deployment systems.
 15. The systemof claim 14, wherein the one or more dispatch systems comprise at leastone central dispatch systems and one or more local dispatch systems. 16.The system of claim 13, further comprising program instructions storedin the at least one non-transitory computer readable medium andexecutable by at least one processor to: determine a type of theidentified remote situation; and select, from the plurality of UAVs, aUAV that has a support configuration to provide or assist in support forthe determined type of the identified remote situation.
 17. The systemof claim 16, wherein the support configuration comprises a package ofone or more items to provide or assist in support for the identifiedremote situation.
 18. The system of claim 16, wherein the supportconfiguration comprises one or more operational functions to provide orassist in support for the identified remote situation.
 19. The system ofclaim 13, wherein selecting the UAV from the plurality of UAVscomprises: determining a user-account associated with the identifiedremote situation; determining a service level for the user-account; andusing the service level as a further basis to select the UAV.
 20. Asystem comprising: a plurality of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs),wherein the plurality of UAVs are configured to provide support for aplurality of remote situations, and wherein the plurality of UAVscomprises at least a first UAV configured to provide support for a firstremote situation and a second UAV configured to provide support for asecond remote situation; and at least one computing system comprising aprocessor, wherein the computing system is configured to: identify aremote situation; determine a target location corresponding to theidentified remote situation; select the first unmanned aerial vehicle(UAV) from the plurality of UAVs that are configured to provide supportfor the plurality of remote situations, wherein the selection of thefirst UAV is based at least in part on a determination that the firstUAV is better configured to provide support for the identified remotesituation than at least one other UAV, from the plurality of UAVs;determine that an expected benefit of sending the first UAV to thetarget location outweighs a cost of sending the first UAV to the targetlocation; and in response to determining that the expected benefitoutweighs the cost, cause the first UAV to: (a) travel in aforward-flight mode to the target location to provide support for theidentified remote situation, (b) transition to a hover flight mode whenthe first UAV is located at or near to the target location, and (c)while in the hover flight mode, provide at least some support for theidentified remote situation, wherein, to provide at least some supportfor the identified remote situation while in the hover flight mode, thefirst UAV uses a winch to lower one or more support items to a ground ator near the target location.
 21. The system of claim 20, wherein the atleast one component comprises one or more of: (a) an access system, (b)a dispatch system, and (c) a deployment system.